Quite a number of you have come
across my essay "Priesthood Is A State Of Being." It
describes, among other things, the nature of a call to priesthood.

Many of us are called. In
fact, almost all of us are called to something. I knew
someone who was called to be a plumber. Between his plumbing
business and his family, he was a really happy, fulfilled person.
I also remember someone I once knew whose call to ministry
was as a musician. He did far more as a musician than he ever
could have any other way - and he loved what he did!

Some people think that they are
called, but are they? Is it their calling, for that matter,
or is it what someone else wants (or does not want) their calling
to be? I recall, for instance, someone who stated a large
percentage of men in seminary who were supposedly there primarily
to please their mothers and an almost as large percentage who were
in seminary allegedly to displease their fathers. And what is
it about their supposed goal that is calling them?

In some cases, a real calling
can be so strong and unavoidable that it makes the proverbial
"death and taxes" seem optional by comparison.

So, how do you know if you are
called? And what is it that you are pursuing? And what
do you envision yourself doing if you reach what your calling is
calling you to do?

Let's take a look at this.
You'll want to, because it's something we all deal with,
sometimes more than once in our lives.